Category Archives: MLM startup

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Cybersecurity Basics For Anyone

    Thomas Ritter is an associate attorney at Thompson Burton PLLC. His practice area focuses primarily on cybersecurity law, which includes an assortment of data protection and privacy-related matters, and a wide-variety of business transactions. He assists diverse businesses from well-established companies to early stage start-ups.

    According to a recent survey of US CEOs, cybersecurity represents the biggest external concern for 2019.  If organizations know cybersecurity is an issue, then why is there such a struggle to combat this universal problem? In my opinion, the answer lies within the following Tony Robbins quote, “Complexity is the enemy of execution”. Organizations view […]

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    DS-SRC: The industry’s positive first step towards self regulation

      Kevin Thompson is an MLM attorney, proud husband, father of four and a founding member of Thompson Burton PLLC. Named as one of the top 25 most influential people in direct sales, Kevin Thompson has extensive experience to help entrepreneurs launch their businesses on secure legal footing. Recently featured on Bloomberg TV and several national publications, Thompson is a thought-leader in the industry.

      The Direct Selling – Self Regulatory Council (DSSRC) is a good first step towards meaningful self regulation. Without question, the industry needs additional oversight. The FTC got heavily involved during the Herbalife / Vemma years, much to the chagrin of industry insiders. The results were messy, imprecise, and predictable. It was predictable because absent meaningful […]

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      10 Simple Heuristics to Identify Healthy Companies

        Kevin Thompson is an MLM attorney, proud husband, father of four and a founding member of Thompson Burton PLLC. Named as one of the top 25 most influential people in direct sales, Kevin Thompson has extensive experience to help entrepreneurs launch their businesses on secure legal footing. Recently featured on Bloomberg TV and several national publications, Thompson is a thought-leader in the industry.

        I was recently asked to list out 10 factors that distributors could use to measure companies. After having represented countless companies and been on the front lines to observe both good and bad behaviors, I have a pretty good idea about the important factors. So here goes, in no particular order… 1) Experienced Leadership In […]

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        The FTC Goes After Digital Altitude

          Kevin Thompson is an MLM attorney, proud husband, father of four and a founding member of Thompson Burton PLLC. Named as one of the top 25 most influential people in direct sales, Kevin Thompson has extensive experience to help entrepreneurs launch their businesses on secure legal footing. Recently featured on Bloomberg TV and several national publications, Thompson is a thought-leader in the industry.

          On January 29, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission went after the company Digital Altitude. The FTC’s pursuit represents the first enforcement action against a network marketing company under the Trump administration. Reading between the lines, there are some key takeaways — some familiar and some new — for how the FTC will police network marketing […]

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          The SEC’s Enforcement of Pyramid-Based Schemes: Part 2

            Kevin Thompson is an MLM attorney, proud husband, father of four and a founding member of Thompson Burton PLLC. Named as one of the top 25 most influential people in direct sales, Kevin Thompson has extensive experience to help entrepreneurs launch their businesses on secure legal footing. Recently featured on Bloomberg TV and several national publications, Thompson is a thought-leader in the industry.

            Over the past five years, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has repeatedly exerted its regulatory will on multi-level marketing companies. In Part One of this two part series, I explained the basic elements of a “security” and the trouble surrounding the presence of unregistered securities in the context of network marketing. In this article, I provide some concrete […]

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            Understanding Unregistered Securities: The Linchpin in the SEC’s Cases Against Network Marketing Companies

              Kevin Thompson is an MLM attorney, proud husband, father of four and a founding member of Thompson Burton PLLC. Named as one of the top 25 most influential people in direct sales, Kevin Thompson has extensive experience to help entrepreneurs launch their businesses on secure legal footing. Recently featured on Bloomberg TV and several national publications, Thompson is a thought-leader in the industry.

              While entrepreneurs and marketers alike are often aware of the FTC’s involvement in the direct sales space, clients largely remain unaware of the Security and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) involvement in network marketing. The SEC oversees the enforcement of federal securities laws. This means the SEC is designed to ensure companies do not offer or sell securities in the absence […]